Babylon Village gives itself authority to exceed tax cap

Babylon Village trustees voted to give themselves the authority to exceed the state’s 2 percent cap on tax levy increases at a sparsely attended board meeting Tuesday night.

Mayor Ralph Scordino said the move came in response to rising health care costs, workers’ compensation and insurance costs.

The village also faces “well over $1 million” in cleanup and recovery costs after superstorm Sandy, he said. FEMA and New York State might reimburse a portion of that, but the village has not yet received payment, he said.

The village also will pay more than $1 million to repair the municipal pool, damaged during the storm.